Changing the Ice
by crazygirlne
Summary: After Jack joins the Doctor and Rose, they make a stop at Woman Wept, then visit a completely different beach.
1. Chapter 1

Prompt from scullywolf: _I'd like to see you write some more S1 Team TARDIS, maybe when they went to Woman Wept?_

* * *

At first, he'd thought that having Jack along might be a fantastic idea. He could use a distraction to keep his mind away from inappropriate thoughts of Rose Tyler, and Jack was certainly capable of making himself known.

However, the Doctor quickly realized his plan had backfired.

It wasn't that he was jealous of the attention Rose gave the questionable Captain, of course; he was a Time Lord, above such emotions, better than some stupid ape who got all possessive when another male showed interest in his woman. Which was not to say that Rose Tyler was the Doctor's woman. Quite the opposite, in fact, which was yet another reason the Doctor wasn't jealous.

He was, though, worried. Yes, worried was the appropriate word.

Rose was young, so much younger than the Doctor himself. He knew well she could handle herself when it came to the sorts of people they encountered on their travels. Honestly, he quite enjoyed watching her handle herself in those situations. He worried, though, about whether she was experienced enough to handle an intergalactic flirt of Jack Harkness's caliber.

The Doctor's eyes narrowed as he studied the duo's body language when they returned to the console room.

"That's pretty much it for now," Rose was saying to an attentive Jack. "I mean, we didn't see everything, but things go away an' come back and move all the time, so if I showed you around again tomorrow, it might be completely different."

The Doctor watched her eyes sparkle at the other human and saw the tilt of her head, then huffed and slid under the console for repair work, missing the longing look Rose shot the Time Lord when he'd turned away.

"Thanks for showing me around, Rosie," said Jack. He raised his voice some to continue when the Doctor banged and clanked a little more loudly, the TARDIS sending a retaliatory spark. "So, whaddaya usually do around here for fun?"

"Not what you're implying with that look," responded Rose, hands on her hips and a tongue-touched smile on her face.

Not that the Doctor knew what expression she was making just by how she sounded. Genius, him, but that didn't mean he spent all his time studying a human woman, no matter how wonderful she might be.

"Why don't you lot go get dressed for our next stop," said the Doctor, sliding back out from under the console. "And dress warmly. We're going somewhere cold."

"All right, Doctor. Be back in a mo'," said Rose starting into the corridor. She turned back and looked at Jack, who hadn't moved. "You coming, Jack?"

"I think I can find my way back to my room on my own thanks to your tour, Rosie," he told her. "I just need a sec first."

Rose nodded and smiled, then made her way towards her room.

"Not gonna wait for you if you aren't ready," said the Doctor, turning his attention to the console and away from the ex-Time Agent.

"You don't have to worry about her, Doc," said Jack, moving to stand next to him so he could speak in a low voice. "At least, you don't have to worry about her where I'm concerned. We talked while she was showin' me around, and she made it clear she isn't interested. We might flirt, Doc, but I'm not going to try to make her interested in me. Don't think I could even if I wanted to," he said with a chuckle.

"Rose likes pretty boys," the Doctor said, moving to another part of the console.

"You sayin' I'm not pretty?" ask Jack, pretending offense.

The Doctor turned towards the other man, crossing his arms.

"I'm saying that it's good you're leaving her alone," he warned, fixing Jack with an icy stare.

Jack laughed again.

"You two are just so cute," he said. "Neither one of you has eyes for anyone else, and yet you still can't see each other."

"And what's that supposed to mean?" asked the Doctor, still staring.

"It means, Doc, that Rose will never be interested in a human on this ship," said Jack, taking a step closer to the Doctor again. "She's head over heels for you."

"Don't be stupid," said the Doctor, turning to fiddle with equipment on the console.

"C'mon, Doctor," pressed Jack, "I may have just got here, but I'm not an idiot. Thought you two were pulling my leg at first when you said you weren't together. The way you look at each other… And that dance! You've got to admit, people who aren't interested in each other don't usually get caught up enough to miss a teleport."

"I don't have to admit anything of the sort," the Doctor retorted, flipping a lever and making the TARDIS shake as she arrived at their location.

"Okay, Doc, whatever you say," said Jack, and the Doctor could imagine the eye roll that was aimed at his back. "Just wanted to let you know that you don't need to be jealous of me. I'm not trying to get in the way."

The Doctor turned towards Jack to argue, but he was distracted by Rose's return. She wore a warm winter jacket, a scarf with various shades of pink, a matching knitted hat pulled down over her ears, and a flush on her cheeks from all the warm clothing. He stared for a moment, wondering how she could make even ordinary clothing look so beautiful. For a human, that is.

"Ready, Doctor," she said happily as she walked over to the console. She looked at Jack questioningly. "You not changing?"

Jack glanced at the coordinates on the Doctor's screen, which were displaying in standard digits rather than in Gallifreyan. The Doctor frowned and gave the TARDIS a mental nudge. The TARDIS, in return, gave him the equivalent of a smirk.

"Nah," Jack answered Rose. "I've been here before. Besides, I'm beat, could use a day to just relax, ya know? I'll catch the next trip, though." He looked at the Doctor mischievously before starting toward the corridor. "This planet's a good date spot, anyway, and I don't want to be the third wheel," he added, timing it so Rose wouldn't be able to question him.

"What did he mean by that, Doctor?" asked Rose, looking up at him quizzically, a hint of challenge hiding behind an innocent facade.

"No clue," the Doctor replied cheerfully.

No, the Doctor thought. Bringing Jack along had certainly not been the best way to ignore his growing feelings for Rose. At least the Doctor had enough restraint to avoid acting on those feelings. He hoped. She looked at him so trustingly, so admiringly, and yet she was still unafraid to call him on it when he was being an idiot.

"Doctor," she said now. "You're staring at me. Is something wrong?"

Speaking of idiots, he scolded himself.

"Nope," he said, pasting on a grin and moving quickly towards the door, Rose following. "Welcome to Woman Wept," he told her as he opened the doors, leaning against a doorframe and crossing his arms, waiting to see her reaction.

He wasn't disappointed. She stepped out of the TARDIS and her eyes grew wider, her jaw dropping slightly. They were on a deserted beach that went farther than they could see in either direction. Directly in front of them was the ocean.

The wind caught Rose's hair as she took a few steps away from the TARDIS. The Doctor uncrossed his arms and followed. Rose's gaze moved upward, taking in the hundred-foot waves, frozen solid and sparkling in the cool sun, reflecting light and shifting colors.

"It's beautiful, Doctor," breathed Rose, watching the play of light for another minute before turning toward him and grinning, one of the biggest smiles he'd seen yet. Not that he kept track. "It's brilliant."

She turned back towards the waves, reaching for his hand unconsciously, surprising him. He let her take it, especially when he realized it made it easier for him to avoid putting an arm around her. Not that it would be for any reason other than ensuring her warmth, of course.

"Why's it called Woman Wept?" she asked.

"From orbit, if you're in just the right spot, the continent looks like a woman weeping," he said. "We'll make a stop when we leave."

"They look like they're still moving," she told him. "Like the waves could start moving again at any second."

She squeezed his hand, then seemed to realize she'd taken it without them running for their lives. She blushed, turning ever-so-slightly pinker than she already was from the wind and the cold, and let go. His hand twitched once, as if in protest, before he crossed his arms again and looked out at the ice.

"Does look like that, doesn't it?" he said. "Won't move again, though. Some things, once changed, they don't change back to how they used to be."

"That's a good thing, I think," said Rose. From the look on her face when he glanced at it, he'd wager she was remembering the standstill her life had reached before they'd met.

"Yeah," he said, taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly. As he looked back down at the small human smiling next to him, he had a feeling that his need for Rose Tyler was one of those things that was never going to change back, even if he'd wanted it to.


	2. Chapter 2

Prompt: nine/rose slow touch

I wasn't planning to continue the story, but then this next short chapter happened. I'm keeping it marked as complete because there are no plans to continue further, but we'll see.

Shifts from the Doctor's POV in chapter one to Rose's here.

* * *

After their visit to Woman Wept, and after they saved the Earth from Blon Fel-Fotch Passameer-Day Slitheen's attempt at escape, the Doctor set the TARDIS to random, taking the trio to a different location.

Rose eagerly opened the door, seeking out her first glimpse of a strange, alien planet, excited to set foot on another new world.

In front of her, however, she saw an ordinary beach. This one was rather lacking in frozen waves, the water instead a bright turquoise color, waves rushing in and moving out, the white, sandy beach covered in scantily-clad tourists jumping in and out of the surf or reclining on towels or beach chairs. Rose stuck her head out further and saw an American flag waving at the edge of the beach, a state flag below it.

Rose turned back around, grinning, to find Jack approaching the door and the Doctor intent on something at the console.

"Where'd he land us this time, Rosie?" asked Jack, matching her smile with one of his own.

"Someplace we're not really dressed for," she replied, looking down at her jacket before eyeing Jack's even heavier clothing. "Might need to lose a few layers."

Jack's grin grew wider.

"Sounds like my kind of place," he said, shifting to look out the doors. "Oh yeah, this'll work," he declared, winking at Rose as he walked back toward his room, clapping the Doctor on the shoulder when he passed by him.

The Doctor glanced after Jack and then turned to look at Rose.

"What's he on about, then?" he asked.

"Have you looked at where you landed us, Doctor?" asked Rose.

"Course I have," he responded, glancing down at the monitor. "Wouldn't have let you step outside if I didn't know it was relatively safe. Earth, America, Florida, 2013."

"And do you know where in Florida you landed us?" she pressed walking over to stand next to him, sure there'd have been either a reaction or a dismissive comment if he knew they'd arrived at a common tourist trap.

He looked at her for a moment, and Rose focused on keeping her breath even as his piercing eyes searched hers. He turned back to the monitor, inputting a few commands to bring up the exterior camera. Rose watched his eyes narrow, then he moved his hands to the controls.

"That's alright, then," he said, plastering on a grin, "I can set the coordinates at random again, try to find somewhere a bit more entertaining."

"Wait, Doctor," said Rose, and the Doctor's hands froze. He turned back to face her. "It might be fun, yeah? It was nice the last time we were on a beach together. I mean, not that this is the same sort of beach, but it's new to me, too. Besides, Jack's already gone to change, and he's probably not going to be decent anywhere else."

He watched her quietly, and Rose wished, not for the first time, that she had some inkling of what was going on in his mind when he looked at her, wondering if he felt anything for her, knowing he couldn't possibly think about her the way she did him. She'd grown so quickly to care about him, to admire him, and though she knew he cared about her on some level and even went so far as to seem jealous at times, he'd never shown he was interested in the sort of relationship she'd started craving from him. She was perfectly fine remaining as they were, of course, but there were times, like when they'd danced after retrieving Jack, that she wished she could give in to her urge to stroke his face, to snog him properly, to feel him pressed against her in a way that wouldn't be reasonable if they were just mates.

"Fine," he said finally, "we'll stay here, but you and Jack need to be back on the TARDIS by dark."

"You mean you aren't coming with us?" she blurted, surprised.

"No," he said firmly, crossing his arms.

"Okay," said Rose, quietly, before heading to her room to change into her swimsuit.

When she returned a few minutes later, Jack was leaning against the console, chatting animatedly with the Doctor, who was responding with a decided lack of enthusiasm. Jack was wearing swim shorts, with a yellow duck inflatable at his waist and his normal cap on his head. Rose burst out laughing.

"Seriously, Jack?" she asked, eying the cartoon duck.

He grinned widely, looking Rose up and down once. Something about the way he looked at her since joining them, despite his flirtations, told Rose the Captain had no intentions of pursuing her romantically, and the two of them had settled into a comfortable friendship that fell somewhere between siblings and college roommates.

"Nah, I'm not serious," he told her, "just wanted to see your reaction. Nobody'd even notice me, though, with you looking like that."

The Doctor stilled, and he turned to look at Rose over his shoulder, eyes widening almost imperceptibly, slightly enough that she thought she might have imagined it. Rose blushed and looked down at herself, at the pink polka-dotted bikini that enhanced her assets nicely.

"Thanks," she mumbled, determined not to be upset that the Doctor had turned away without saying anything. It was silly to have hoped he'd call her beautiful again.

Jack took the duck off his waist and walked toward the door.

"Come on, Rose," he said, "let's get some sun."

"Alright," she said, walking past the Doctor, scooping up a beach bag that had appeared, and following Jack out of the TARDIS. She turned to close the doors, only to see the Doctor had followed her and was standing in the doorway, still in his usual clothing, complete with leather jacket. "Thought you weren't coming," she said, looking up at him.

"Changed my mind," he replied, crossing his arms. "That alright?"

"Yeah," she responded, ignoring the challenge in his question and instead addressing the flash of insecurity she thought she saw on his face.

The two walked slowly to some unoccupied beach chairs, Jack having run ahead. The ex-Time Agent was already engrossed in conversation with a couple who appeared to be in their mid-twenties and very interested in whatever he was telling them.

Rose laughed.

"He can charm anyone, can't he?" she asked, looking over at the Doctor, who grunted noncommittally.

They sat, and Rose started digging through the beach bag, finding a big, floppy hat, an inflatable ball, a romance novel she'd not yet read, and a bottle of sun screen. She set the book to one side and poured some of the protective lotion into her hand, rubbing it over her arms and looking at the Doctor, who was watching the ocean, his arms crossed, expression blank.

"We don't have to stay, Doctor," said Rose, slowing her movements. "Don't really look like you're enjoying yourself."

"'M fine," he said, turning toward her with a grin that slipped a little after he saw something behind her. She looked over her shoulder and saw a couple of guys blatantly checking her out. She rolled her eyes and turned back toward the Time Lord, frowning at the space between them.

"Did you move your chair closer, Doctor?" she asked.

"Why would I do that?" he countered, a genuine grin on his face for the first time on this trip.

"Dunno," she answered, resuming her application of the lotion and relaxing a bit. "You've been distracted, bit quieter than usual."

"Just thinking, is all," he said, turning back toward the ocean.

The tension had dissipated some, and Rose quickly finished smoothing the lotion over most of her exposed skin. She looked at the Doctor, lotion bottle in one hand.

"Doctor," she ventured, "mind giving me a hand?" She gestured toward her back, and he was still for a moment before smiling and standing, motioning for her to scoot forward so he could sit behind her.

"I suppose we can't have you burning, now, can we?" he said. "Would slow us down when we go somewhere a bit more exciting."

Rose gave him enough room to sit behind her, and he did so carefully to avoid tipping the beach chair. She fought again to control her breath as his sun-warmed jeans pressed against the outsides of her thighs, and he reached around her to retrieve the bottle of lotion. He gently moved her hair away from the tops of her shoulders, fingertips barely grazing her skin, and Rose suppressed a shiver, scolding herself for reacting to such a cliched situation.

She heard him squirt some of the bottle's contents into his hand, and then nothing happened for a long moment. Just before she turned to ask him if everything was okay, she felt his cool hands slowly, hesitantly begin spreading the lotion over her upper back. Her head rolled forward, and she moaned appreciatively as his firmness increased, cool fingers against warm skin soothing tight muscles. At the sound, the Doctor paused, and Rose held her breath. She heard what sounded like a hard swallow, and then he continued, efficiently coating the rest of her back, fingers lingering momentarily as he surveyed his work.

"All done," he announced, standing and placing the lotion in the beach bag. He smiled at her again, eyes softening for a moment before he continued, tone brisk. "Just remembered some work needs doing on the TARDIS. You two have fun, don't stay too late."

He walked quickly back to the TARDIS before Rose could respond, shoes sinking as he took each step, and she smiled, shaking her head. At least he'd tried to join them, and Rose thought maybe if the beach were less crowded, he might have stayed. She turned back toward the chair the Doctor had occupied, just in time to see Jack situate himself with a contented sigh.

"You two were awfully snuggly over here," he said, his eyes closed and his cap tilted forward and low.

"Couldn't reach my back," Rose said with a shrug.

"You know the Doctor probably had sunscreen pills, right?" Jack told her. "Needing someone else to finish your sunscreen isn't really practical, and a while after they go through a spray can phase, they manage a temporary pill that protects you from sunburn for a few hours. Pretty standard by the time space travel gets more common."

"Probably didn't want to call me a stupid ape again for spending all the time doing the rest of me," Rose mumbled, looking between her book and the ocean, trying to decide which she'd prefer doing, not overthinking what Jack was saying.

Jack laughed, seeming to sense her avoidance, and opened an eye to look at her.

"Rosie, the Doctor adores you. I'd bet my life that man'll kiss you before the month is out," he informed her.

Rose shook her head.

"Doubt it," she said, looking toward the TARDIS for a moment before turning back to the water. "Come on, Jack, let's go for a swim."

When the two returned to the TARDIS, exhausted and laughing after hours of play, the Doctor was waiting for them.

"Have fun?" he asked.

"Sure did," said Jack, winking at Rose before quickly exiting the room.

"Where's he going in a hurry?" asked the Doctor, looking back at Rose.

She shook her head.

"He thinks we need to talk about our feelings for each other," she said, raising her eyebrows.

"What good would that do?" he asked, crossing his arms, and Rose shrugged.

"Depends on whether we have feelings for each other, I guess," she said quickly.

He pinned her with his stare again before turning back toward the console.

"So, where do you want to go after you humans get your sleep?" he inquired, and Rose blinked at the abrupt change in subject. Why would he need to change the subject unless there were something to avoid?

"Doesn't matter," she told him, pausing on her way out of the room and gently placing a hand on his arm. "Anywhere we go together, it's good, yeah?"

He stilled again and responded without looking at her.

"Yep."

She smiled and continued on her way to her room.

"I'll see you in the morning, Doctor."


End file.
